Ella says: “Not only do these beauties taste insanely good, however, they’re also amazingly good for you, providing huge benefits. They’re seriously packed with anti-oxidants, beta-carotene, and even better they’re great for controlling and stabilising your blood sugar levels, so they keep you bursting with energy.”–

2. Brussel Sprout Soup
You either love ’em or hate ’em, but food blogger Jenny Paulin has got a good mix of chestnut and, wait for it, BACON. In healthy small dose, and bought locally, we adhere to this!

–

–

Jenny says: “I enjoyed it and the added smokiness from the bacon and the added nuttiness of the chestnuts, makes it so good. It is also impossible to make this soup look pretty – it is what it is, but it is frugal and tasty and very easy to make.”

–

3. Snowman in a jar
The most fun recipe you’ll ever make. Food blogger sisters, Clare + Lucy, recommend this as gifts for children – they’ll be just smitten.

–

–

This is a creative take on a hot chocolate, and it all starts the making a marshmellow snowman.

Clare and Lucy say: “Your first response could well be ‘Why?’ and I wouldn’t judge you for it. Why imprison a snowman in a glass jar (and that’s after you’ve impaled him on a cocktail stick)? The answer is: because it’s Christmas.”

–

4. Brandy + orange custard
Real proper custard, the traditional British dessert, is an absolute treat. But add brandy and orange and it becomes a dream. That’s what Charlotte Oates of Lively Kitchen decided to do when she decided to spruce up her Christmas pudding dessert. But we say, use this on anything.

––

You’ll love her cheat’s tip. “If all this custard making sounds too much like hard work then simply buy pre-made custard, add the brandy and orange oil and pretend you’re a domestic goddess with your fancy Christmas pudding custard.”

–

5. Seasonal Sandwich Woe Ho Ho
The toasted cheese is a sandwich which fits seamlessly into pretty much any situation, so thinks blogger Helen Graves of Food Stories, whose take on a seasonal sandwich will send you into a happy food coma.

––

Helen says: “I thought I should have a bash at making a seasonal sandwich that actually tastes nice. It’s on sourdough, because there’s a lot of filling, and it needs to have some good sturdy scaffolding around the outside. Next, a layer of shredded sprouts, which I fried a little to get some colour on them, followed by a layer of proper, treacle cured, smoked bacon.”

–

Yule love… the best local ingredients this Christmas at The Food Assembly.